Tag Archives: Japan whalers

New pictures reveal the gory reality of Japan’s so called “scientific” whale hunt in the Southern Ocean. The pictures show in stark reality a slaughtered adult mink whale and its calf being hauled aboard a ship. The pictures were not taken by activists who are interested in protecting whales, but by officials of the Kevin Rudd government which then made them available for use throughout the world. The new Australian administration of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is ready and willing to challenge Japanese policies regarding whales. A Japanese official in Tokyo said the pictures were “dangerous emotional propaganda that could cause serious damage to the relationship between our two countries.” Hideki Moronuki, head of the whaling section of Japan’s fishing, insisted, “the fleet is engaged in random sampling” of whales.

It is still unclear exactly what type of “scientific whaling” activities that Japan is doing. It is clear Japanese whaling ships are killing whales. If the truth generates “emotional” feelings, so be it.

The Australian government is sending a ship outfitted with powerful telescopic lenses and video recorders to shadow the Japanese whaling fleet. Australia will also lead a coalition of anti-whaling nations in lodging formal diplomatic protests to the Japanese government. A plane has already been sent to film operations of the Japanese ships in order to have evidence they are killing humpback whales. The world shares Australia’s laughter at comments by the Japanese government that whales are being killed for scientific purposes and eating them is merely an aftermath of the program to further scientific knowledge. Environment Minister Peter Garret, commented: “You don’t have to harpoon them to find out important scientific information about them. It’s cruel, it’s barbaric and it’s unnecessary.” The Japanese government response is that entire whaling expedition is simply part of the “necessity of research whaling.”

Japan has high class universities which graduate outstanding scientists. Perhaps, there is something wrong with its university system that requires killing whales in order to do some sort of “scientific research.”The killing of humpback whales has nothing to do with science and a great deal to do with Japanese eating habits.

With a determined crew of 40, Paul Watson sailed from the port of Melbourne heading toward the Antarctic in search of Japanese whaling ships. His Sea Shepherd and Conservation Society has been patrolling the seas for years in search of any ships that are out to kill whales. Last year he announced that his mother ship, the Nisshin Manu, was prepared to ram any whaling ship that tried to kill whales. This year, Watson insists his campaign, dubbed Operation Migaloo, in honor of a rare albino humpback is “not going to hurt anybody and we are not going to endanger anybody’s loves at sea.” However, his ship is loaded with smoke bombs and liters of rancid butter and pie fillings which will be sent on the decks of offending Japanese ships that seek to kill the humpbacks. Watson defended his group by saying they are not eco-terrorists. He charged the Japanese whaling ships as the source of any terrorism by their determination to kill the endangered humpback whales.

Last year when Watson caught up with Japanese whaling ships he asked Australian and New Zealand authorities to take action, but they prefer diplomacy to sending rancid butter onto the decks of whaling ships. However, the newly elected government of Kevin Rudd in Australia has pledged to adopt a more aggressive position in defending the rights of humpback whales. Japanese mateys, watch your step.